tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88814562017-03-14T11:10:57.315+08:00Wei Sze - How Are You Getting Along?We should never fear God's leading, even into the turbulent Jordans of our lives, for God stands behind His commands with His omnipotence. Trusting God is taking that step of faith. Trust Him today for today's step of faith.Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.comBlogger956125WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlonghttps://feedburner.google.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-55907600439746307972016-07-15T09:49:00.003+08:002016-07-15T09:53:28.746+08:00More on K's chinese homework ........ <div style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Since yesterday's post was on K's learning to be responsible for a mundane task as 习字, thought I'd share my parent-teacher meeting experience with her Chinese teacher which took place just before the June school holidays.</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Her teacher is a very kind &amp; gentle lady. She is not fierce to the gals and is ever so gentle when she speaks. Think the gals like her&nbsp;<i class="_lew" title="smile emoticon"><i aria-hidden="true" class="_4-k1 img sp_fM-mz8spZ1b sx_5371b4" style="background-image: url(&quot;/rsrc.php/v2/yx/r/pimRBh7B6ER.png&quot;); background-position: 0px -340px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: auto; display: inline-block; height: 16px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"></i><span aria-hidden="true" class="_4mcd" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px;">:)</span></i></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Anyway, she started off by telling me K is a good student and her results were good etc etc. Then went on to highlight some composition weakness. She did not mention any issue with K not handing in her homework on time etc until I raised it. I mentioned to her that I understand that K is sometimes (or maybe all the time??) late in handing in her Chinese homework and is that an issue with the teacher? Told the teacher that I have tried addressing the issue with K with little success and that Chinese is the only subject that I see she is tardy wrt homework.</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">I told the teacher that she can be fiercer to K if she sees the need and it is alright with me if she 惩罚 K appropriately. Essentially I am requesting that she exercises her authority as the Teacher (without saying it that way).</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">She did not immediately agree to my suggestions .... in fact .... she said something to the effect that she would prefer to channel that energy to teaching the kids. Not wrong I suppose.</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">But 2 weeks into the new term, i think the teacher is taking up my suggestion in a different form..... I can tell that K is giving her Chinese homework a little more emphasis (hope this continues). To my knowledge (may not be complete since this is what I hear from K), the teacher has spoken privately to her in addition to giving her notices !</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Sometimes 老师讲一句真的胜过家长讲十句.</span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">To all the passionate teachers out there - thank you for choosing this challenging profession!</span></div><div style="background-color: white; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="color: #6aa84f;">To the teachers i have met who are so effective in their teaching methods, at the same time command the respect of their students and also be loved by the students, I salute you!! K has had the fortune to have such teachers and may she continue to be blessed by them!</span></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/3GgrvvzKD6s" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/07/more-on-ks-chinese-homework.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-46035066497058855902016-07-13T16:28:00.000+08:002016-07-13T16:28:02.599+08:00Homework ......<div style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px;">First week back in school, K came back with her Chinese 习字本and I realised she "owed" her Chinese teacher 1 semester of corrections. I dont know how her teacher can tolerate that.&nbsp;<span class="_4ay8" style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 12px; vertical-align: middle;">😅</span>&nbsp;Anyway, i think her teacher had a word with her and she did them as quickly as she could during the first week.</div><div style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">Today, I discovered that besides the corrections she actually did not do a lot of her 习字 for semester 1.&nbsp;<i class="_3kkw _4-k1" style="background-image: url(&quot;https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v5/uf0/1/16/1f613.png&quot;); background-size: 16px 16px; display: inline-block; height: 16px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"><span class="accessible_elem" style="clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px); font-family: inherit; height: 1px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; white-space: nowrap; width: 1px;">😓</span></i></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">when I met the teacher during the PTM ... she actually didn't complain to me&nbsp;<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;"><i class="_3kkw _4-k1" style="background-image: url(&quot;https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v5/u20/1/16/1f61c.png&quot;); background-size: 16px 16px; display: inline-block; height: 16px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"><span class="accessible_elem" style="clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px); font-family: inherit; height: 1px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; white-space: nowrap; width: 1px;">😜</span></i>&nbsp;so I was clueless.</span></div><div class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;"><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px;">I know K has been quite laxed about her homework (she's on the ball only if the teacher is fierce) but I always thought she would hand in her work ... even if she's late. To me, I think she is an responsible girl mah&nbsp;<i class="_3kkw _4-k1" style="background-image: url(&quot;https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v5/u57/1/16/1f609.png&quot;); background-size: 16px 16px; display: inline-block; height: 16px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"><span class="accessible_elem" style="clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px); font-family: inherit; height: 1px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; white-space: nowrap; width: 1px;">😉</span></i>&nbsp;haha, think I am wrong on this count.</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">Now she's whining and whining while doing her 习字 . Imagine having to write so many words in 1 day&nbsp;<i class="_3kkw _4-k1" style="background-image: url(&quot;https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v5/ud0/1/16/1f602.png&quot;); background-size: 16px 16px; display: inline-block; height: 16px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"><span class="accessible_elem" style="clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px); font-family: inherit; height: 1px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; white-space: nowrap; width: 1px;">😂</span></i><i class="_3kkw _4-k1" style="background-image: url(&quot;https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v5/ud0/1/16/1f602.png&quot;); background-size: 16px 16px; display: inline-block; height: 16px; vertical-align: -3px; width: 16px;"><span class="accessible_elem" style="clip: rect(1px 1px 1px 1px); font-family: inherit; height: 1px; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; white-space: nowrap; width: 1px;">😂</span></i>&nbsp;it's quite a dread. I totally understand. (And the reason why she is doing them now is because the teacher '贴大字报' 了 。。<span class="_4ay8" style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 12px; vertical-align: middle;">😛</span>)</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">Guess she has to understand and take responsibility for her own work.</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">What has mummy been doing u ask?</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">Oops, Sorry, I am not responsible for her homework. I usually check with her if she has any and if yes, has she done it. I take her word for it and that's it. I don't check or enforce. I told her that's not my responsibility.</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">I hope she learnt her lesson! And be more responsible going forward.</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">p/s&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;">my reply to a friend who suggested that i should keep closer tabs on her homework until she gets the "hang" of it ... :)&nbsp;</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-top: 6px;"><span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16.08px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">to me, homework is between she and her teacher. She must learn and recgonise that she is responsible for what is assigned to her. The homework was not assigned to me. If she chooses to ignore the homework or simply forget about it, because the teache</span></span><span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16.08px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">r is not stringent or fierce and she thinks she can get away with it. Then, it's time that she realise that she cannot get away with it and there will be consequences. Just like how this teacher is now "after" her for what is owed her. like you said, nobody taught us how to manage our homework!&nbsp;<span class="_lew" style="font-family: inherit;" title="smile emoticon"><span aria-hidden="true" class="emoticon emoticon_smile" style="background-image: url(&quot;/rsrc.php/v2/yx/r/pimRBh7B6ER.png&quot;); background-position: 0px -340px; background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: auto; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; height: 16px; vertical-align: top; width: 16px;"></span><span aria-hidden="true" class="_4mcd" style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px;">:)</span></span>&nbsp;heehee. some skills can be self taught i think and in this respect, i believe it's still an area that she can afford to fail/fall and learn from it herself .... hope i am right!</span></span></span></div></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/YJR-xRIo-OI" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/07/homework.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-57248599398551219252016-06-20T18:25:00.000+08:002016-06-20T18:25:00.023+08:00June Getaway to Bintan, The Canopi.For this year's holiday, we chose a destination which we have avoided for a long time!! Our last visit was probably in the mid-1990s before we were even married! I think! I really cannot remember.&nbsp; I only remembered the name of the resort - Sedona Beach Resort -- understand that it's been rebranded and now known as Bintan Lagoon Resort.<br /><br />Anyway, the reason we were not keen on Bintan was primarily we thought it was full of singaporeans (it still is i think!) and quite pricey -- as prices were similar to singapore.&nbsp; So after 1 visit, we thought we will give it a miss since there are other more interesting and worthy destinations to visit! heehee.<br /><br />However, when I saw pictures of The Canopi,&nbsp;and because i was really keen on the idea of glamping (having read about it much earlier) -- i thought it's a good chance to try since it's so near home too! <br /><br /><br />Bintan, well, there were still many singaporeans and yes, prices are still similar to Singapore.&nbsp; But i think prices have ran away so much in singapore that Bintan prices now appears slightly more reasonable....LOL.&nbsp; More importantly, the activities available were really kids-friendly and i am glad we did not close our mind to Bintan as a holiday destination.&nbsp; Overall, it was an enjoyable time and&nbsp;just like our&nbsp;<a href="http://weisze.blogspot.sg/2016/01/langkawi.html" target="_blank">Langkawi</a> experience, so glad we gave it a try!&nbsp; <br /><br />But, comparing Bintan and Langkawi, i personally think Langkawi is a nicer destination.&nbsp; The advantage that Bintan has over Langkawi is that it is nearer to Singapore and accessible by ferry which makes it cheaper and faster.&nbsp; <br /><br />My complaint about Bintan is that it feels very man-made (but of course it is!) unlike Langkawi :) and where we stayed, there weren't many shops/F&amp;B outlets within walking distance.<br /><br />Will i go back to Bintan again? Probably....only because i have a child and i think she will enjoy it! <br /><br />Here's my review of <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/ShowUserReviews-g297718-d8536267-r383683701-The_Canopi-Bintan_Island_Riau_Archipelago_Riau_Islands_Province.html#CHECK_RATES_CONT" target="_blank">The Canopi</a> on tripadvisor. <br /><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/Q5LPeA02ybw" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/06/june-getaway-to-bintan-canopi.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-43318276250700651512016-05-31T15:34:00.001+08:002016-05-31T15:34:01.884+08:00Post parent-teacher meet thoughts<p dir="ltr">Last Saturday was the PTM (parent-teacher meeting) with K's school teachers.</p><p dir="ltr">I kind of look forward to meeting the teachers to hear their views of K... even though there's also contact throughout the semester ...guess the Semester 1 results provide a good reference point.</p><p dir="ltr">Anyway, their feedback about her behavior is quite consistent to what we have heard in P1 and P2 - so that's OK. The usual friendly, caring, likeable comments :)&#160;&#160; She seems more confident in class now ... in P2 her Chinese form teacher ever commented to us that she likes to 'hide behind' her classmates and relies on others for answers/thoughts. Seems like no such comment this year.</p><p dir="ltr">When it comes to her work, while the teachers generally have positive comments about her, there are also areas she needs to improve on:</p><p dir="ltr">- not handing in her work (late or completely not handing in Chinese homework)</p><p dir="ltr">- distracted in class. (Maths)</p><p dir="ltr">Her Maths teacher told us frankly that she was pleasantly surprised by K's Maths results.&#160; I think she was expecting a much lower score... lol. And she was telling us that K generally has a lot of corrections for the work done and she often does not know what's happening in class -_-&#160; I guess I am not surprised by the feedback. .. because I have seen her worksheets and practice papers ..... full of mistakes! Thank God she decided to be careful and put in the effort during her Semestral exam.</p><p dir="ltr">Whereas her Chinese teacher seemed resigned to the fact that she is one of those students who is not diligent when it comes to homework &#128529;&#160; poor teacher.&#160; I think K is taking advantage of her 'kindness'.</p><p dir="ltr">K is most afraid of her English teacher who has a reputation for being fierce. But sadly, English is also the subject she fared worst. Let's see if I can help her brush up her English this June.&#160; </p><p dir="ltr">The funny thing is I think the English teacher prepares the girls quite well for exams ... so there is a disconnect for me in terms of the results. Maybe K is trying so hard not to be scolded by the teacher in class that she is missing out on what is actually taught ! Haha. </p><p dir="ltr">Well, let's see how terms 3 and 4 go!</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/nVcSqb2Bd6s" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/05/post-parent-teacher-meet-thoughts.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-36851997823453545552016-04-14T17:45:00.001+08:002016-04-14T17:45:36.940+08:00Rough ride ahead - part 2<p dir="ltr">Spent the last few years rebalancing our portfolio and cutting out some worthless crap. </p><p dir="ltr">Hopefully it is enough to sail through the days ahead without too much of a dent.</p><p dir="ltr">Yield wise, results have been satisfactory.&nbsp; Managed to achieve my annual dividend (based on last 4 years portfolio)&nbsp; collected in the first 4 months this year. That's what I was working towards.&nbsp; Doubling the dividend yield and actual amount collected. Hope it all turns out as expected! </p><p dir="ltr">Wish me luck !</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/-ztZ9hF2gOE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/04/rough-ride-ahead-part-2.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-21411708364078919942016-04-14T13:39:00.001+08:002016-04-14T13:39:52.477+08:00Rough ride ahead I think....<p dir="ltr">Singapore unexpectedly eases currency policy http://www.cnbc.com/id/103545932</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/BduKAbCkv9I" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/04/rough-ride-ahead-i-think.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-64995752641138098392016-01-22T00:30:00.000+08:002016-01-22T00:30:07.808+08:00Is it any different in Primary 3? - Part 2For some unknown reason, Kaira seems a little more responsible with the start of the new school year.&nbsp; The change is "sudden" in my opinion ..... it's like just a few days before the start of the school, she was still the same old 8 year old ;)&nbsp;but with the start of the new school year .... i can see a slight positive change.<br /><br />For one, she started to be more responsible with respect to the homework assigned by her teachers.&nbsp; For the last 2 years -- as homework was rather infrequent, maybe she isn't used to it ;p -- she will forget that she has homework and she usually never did them until reminded by the teacher or if for some reason I am aware of it, i will ask her about it.<br /><br />But with the start of the new academic year, she surprised me by doing her homework without being asked/told.&nbsp; and no complaints whatsoever.&nbsp; What a splendid change i thought!&nbsp; How that happened, i don't know.&nbsp; Maybe it is a&nbsp;- going on-9 phase??<br /><br />#2, in the past&nbsp;she hardly tells me the instructions that the teachers give.&nbsp; Or if there's any communication. she will tell me that she has forgotten or&nbsp;she will get the details wrong.&nbsp;But this year she is communicating the instructions more! and they are usually accurate.<br /><br />#3 used to have to take the longest time to wake her up in the mornings!&nbsp; This year, miraculously she has been very cooperative so far! no dragging her feet whatsoever in the mornings.&nbsp; so much easier to wake her up compared to the last 2 years! Praise the Lord.<br /><br />Certainly hope that these positive changes will continue and that there will be more positive changes!! <br /><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/9Pjz31YZl-o" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/01/is-it-any-different-in-primary-3-part-2.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-21034736195333623212016-01-21T09:38:00.000+08:002016-01-21T09:38:08.227+08:00Is it any different in Primary 3?This year marks the start of a new phase for little (well maybe not so little afterall) Kaira.&nbsp; Primary 3.&nbsp; Why new ? Introduction of Science as an additional subject. and believe it or not, more homework and expectations from the teachers! <br /><br />I am so not used to it honestly.<br /><br />So to a certain extent, it is true - P1 and P2 years are honeymoon years!! And looking back, I am kind of glad that i chose to be more relaxed during the 2 years and her days are filled with playdates and fun times after school.&nbsp; Once this phase past, we will never get it back isn't it?<br /><br />of course it doesn't mean that she doesn't do any studying or work.&nbsp; but my emphasis was more on her weak areas -- through the worksheets/test results that she received, i was able to identify certain areas of weakness in her academic work -- and i chose to focus on these areas rather than just push her to do well for everything. my rationale was that better that she builds the foundation for the more difficult academic requirements ahead ..... <br /><br />to be honest, i think if i had chosen to push her harder in "studying", doing additional worksheets -- she could possibly have done better. maybe average of 5 more points per subject&nbsp;so that she gets closer to&nbsp;full marks ??&nbsp;&nbsp; but i am not sure if that is worth the effort ................<br /><br />i mean if she naturally scores full marks&nbsp; -- then good for her ......... .&nbsp; but if with whatever effort she puts in, she gets between 90-95 -- i think it's also&nbsp;good enough for P1 and P2 lah. <br /><br />but 1 important "lesson" that she learnt in P1 and P2 -- which i hope will stay with her in the years to come -- was that she can do better and more if she chooses to put in the time and effort.&nbsp; and stop whining and complaining!! for some reason, she has&nbsp;the bad habit of "complaining/whining" about how difficult things are ....that she can't do it .... and she will give up halfway because she feels that its too difficult.&nbsp; <br /><br />i am not sure where this trait came from ... but it became fairly apparently with the start of primary school. <br /><br />So .....one of the subjects that she didn't like very much initially is Maths.&nbsp; She is not the kind that find pleasure or satisfaction in sovling challenging maths problems.&nbsp; I know some kids are.&nbsp; They are motivated to do well and they will try to solve the problem because they take pride in being able to solve the problem. My daughter is not one of them.<br /><br />Once she encounters a more difficult problem -- which actually if u break it down and maybe think about it -- it's not that difficult afterall -- she will just say she doesn't know how to do it. and sometimes refer to the answer key..... 气死我了! this more so in P2 as the problem sums gets a little more challenging.<br /><br />for the last term in P2, i spent more time with her on Maths - explaining the answers to her and getting her to practice.&nbsp; and of course, reminding her to be careful and to check her work (she is simply very careless in her work -- so much so that she can miss out an entire page during tests....).<br /><br />finally in her SA2 maths paper -- she scored a perfect score and i can tell that she was very pleased and happy.&nbsp; and i had to reinforced the point that hardwork and being careful can make a difference.... now, i am still using this as an example to encourage her. and she acknowledges that because she went through the process and she saw the improvement in her results.&nbsp; <br /><br />I am grateful for this teachable moment.<br /><br />This year, i told her we will have to do the same for her English and Chineses --- for they have been neglected during last 2 years....haha..... especially her English! So atrocious now. let's see.<br /><br />i do feel that she seems to have less time after school these days as she comes home with homework everyday! what a difference from P1 and P2 :(&nbsp; i don't want to add to her burden by giving her more work .... but o well, let's see how things go.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/1Wi1yLQvGXE" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/01/is-it-any-different-in-primary-3.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-55690315954293907232016-01-17T16:04:00.001+08:002016-01-17T16:56:20.745+08:00Standing in the gap.<p dir="ltr">So there I was sitting in church and struggling with the behaviour of a specific individual that has been made worse with our relocation to Singapore 4 years ago... so much so that i wish at times that we are still living overseas. </p><p dir="ltr">At this point where I am struggling with anger, resentment, indignance. .. God chose to put a thought it me. </p><p dir="ltr">A thought that I would love to reject but I know I cannot. </p><p dir="ltr">Honestly I have mostly tried to ignore or pretend to be unperturbed by the specific individual. But I know I am. Deep within, subconaciously the resentment has grown so much in me that it has taken a toll on me and my closest. Especially in the last 4 years. The negative thoughts I have entertained were endless and scary.&nbsp; So much so I am angry at the individual for being a stumbling block in my life.</p><p dir="ltr">Alot of times I feel terrible because I felt that I shouldn't be such a small minded person. That i shouldn't be so judgemental.&#160; That i should be more accomodating, loving, thoughtful. And that I should try to accept the behavior/comments -- at least don't be too disturbed by it.&#160;&#160; But I found that I can't.&#160; Maybe it is pride.&#160; Maybe it is because i am opinionated. Maybe it is because i believe that while basic respect is a given any more needs to be earned regardless of seniority. Maybe it is something else.&#160; I don't know. Maybe I am just being difficult and spoilt.</p><p dir="ltr">I find it very difficult to accept something that I feel is wrong.&#160; This has been a point of contention for me for the longest time..... </p><p dir="ltr">And yet God says let us put this aside. Whether I can accept it or not does not matter. (What?!?) Whether I like it or not makes no difference. I am to stand in the gap and pray. Pray for the person.&#160; What??! Pray for someone that is driving me nuts??</p><p dir="ltr">O dear. Can I do it? By my own physical strength and human mental capacity - honestly no. </p><p dir="ltr">God knows i cannot.&nbsp; So He even put the gist of the prayer into my mind and so here goes ....</p><p dir="ltr">Dear Lord, I pray for myself (and the person I am representing) :</p><p dir="ltr">- I pray that you will forgive me (and the person I am standing in the gap for) of my focus on myself;</p><p dir="ltr">- help me (and the person) to let go of the past and break the chains that bind. Chains of low self esteem, insecurity and lack of significance; </p><p dir="ltr">- soften my (and the person's) heart so that I am open to your words and wisdom and the counsel of the people around me.</p><p dir="ltr">- remove my pride (and the person's) as it is standing in the way of your work in me.&#160; </p><p dir="ltr">- help me (and who I represent) so that I can enjoy and experience the freedom that is in you. Free to love, free to receive, free to give. Free from expectations. Free from self criticism. Free from the negativity that others generate. </p><p dir="ltr">I pray all these in Jesus' name. Amen.<br>======================</p><p dir="ltr">The reason I am writing this prayer down is to remind me to pray. To continue to stand in the gap. To encourage myself to follow the ways of the Lord rather than wallow in self pity and feeling indignant.&#160; </p><p dir="ltr">Reminder that while I may not agree with the behaviour and I don't accept the comments, thoughts and behaviour -- I can continue to pray for the person.&#160; It doesn't mean I embrace all that the person says and do.&#160; But it does mean that I acknowledge that any improvement or change that I see is the work of God for there is nothing that I can do. I can only pray.&#160; </p><p dir="ltr">It seems impossible. But I am therefore praying for a miracle that things will change and improve. That God will move wondrously. </p><p dir="ltr">It is only possible with the grace of God.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/s3Cgd527ddY" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/01/standing-in-gap.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-73814872448811976302016-01-16T17:53:00.001+08:002016-01-17T12:15:00.926+08:00尊重<p dir="ltr">&#35748;&#20026;&#21035;&#20154;&#19981;&#23562;&#37325;&#20320; - &#26159;&#19981;&#26159;&#24212;&#35813;&#20808;&#26816;&#35752;&#19968;&#19979;&#33258;&#24049;&#30340;&#35328;&#34892;&#20030;&#27490;&#12290;</p><p dir="ltr">&#35273;&#24471;&#33258;&#24049;&#27809;&#38169;, &#37027;&#26159;&#19981;&#26159;&#35813;&#32771;&#34385;&#30053;&#26377; &#19981;&#21516;&#30340;&#35266;&#28857;? &#20026;&#20160;&#20040;&#21035;&#20154;&#20250;&#26377;&#19981;&#21516;&#30340;&#24819;&#27861;? </p><p dir="ltr">&#25105;&#24819;&#26377;&#20123;&#20154;&#30340;&#22266;&#25191;&#12290;&#12290;&#12290; &#23475;&#24049;&#21448;&#23475;&#20154;&#12290;</p><p dir="ltr">&#23545;&#21035;&#20154;&#24635;&#26159;&#34920;&#29616;&#30340;&#38750;&#24120;&#38543;&#21644;, &#26126;&#30333;&#20107;&#29702;, &#22788;&#22788;&#20026;&#20182;&#20154;&#30528;&#24819;&#12290;&#23545;&#23376;&#22899;&#30340;&#19981;&#21516;&#35266;&#28857;&#21364;&#19968;&#28857;&#20063;&#19981;&#35797;&#30528;&#20102;&#35299;&#12290;&#24635;&#21916;&#27426;&#25226;&#24102;&#26377;"&#23041;&#32961;"&#24615;&#30340;&#35805;&#25346;&#22312;&#22068;&#36793;&#12290;&#12290;&#12290;&#21040;&#24213;&#26159;&#20160;&#20040;&#29992;&#24847;?&#160; &#20160;&#20040;&#19981;&#23562;&#25964;, &#19981;&#20307;&#20250;&#20320;&#30340;&#24863;&#21463;, &#27809;&#36319;&#20320;&#22810;&#35828;&#20960;&#21477;&#35805;&#12290;&#12290;&#12290;&#26159;&#25105;&#21548;&#20102;&#20063;&#35273;&#24471;&#33707;&#21517;&#20854;&#22937;&#12290;</p><p dir="ltr">&#25191;&#36855;&#19981;&#21566;&#30340;&#38075;&#29275;&#35282;&#23574;&#21482;&#20250;&#20196;&#20154;&#21453;&#24863;&#12290;</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/BkAQgr_xOFk" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/01/blog-post_16.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-16183987867383703132016-01-16T12:50:00.001+08:002016-01-16T12:50:02.228+08:00Blessing or Not?<p dir="ltr">When your blessing becomes more of a burden to the recipient - maybe it is time to reconsider what constitutes a blessing.</p><p dir="ltr">Maybe it is the recipient's own perception or lack of self esteem that makes the blessings a burden.</p><p dir="ltr">Maybe it is what is said and how it is communicated that the blessing unknowingly becomes a burden.</p><p dir="ltr">Either way -- it is a sad thing. Something that is meant to be good and beautiful becoming a burden.</p><p dir="ltr">And sadly people don't reflect much on their actions and their consequences.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/r4ZPRz7-gtw" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/01/blessing-or-not.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-25072424143240421762016-01-15T10:40:00.000+08:002016-01-15T10:49:54.555+08:00LangkawiIn Dec 2015, we went for a short getaway to Langkawi in Malaysia.<br /><br />It was more enjoyable than I had imagined ... haha... maybe it was because i wasn't diligent enough in my research and had relied on my "hearsay" knowledge of langkawi.<br /><br />I have never visited Langkawi prior to this. Kind of embarrassed saying that considering that it's such a near destination and many of my "foreign" friends have visited langkawi! LOL.<br /><br />"Touristy", "expensive", "crowded", "nicer beaches elsewhere" -- all these were comments/feedback that probably made me give less consideration to Langkawi as a holiday destination. <br /><br />And to a certain extent, these are true statements -- but that shouldn't put me off visiting a destination i suppose.&nbsp; Afterall, Paris is touristy and quite expensive too - and hoardes of tourists still go there! <br /><br />Langkawi surprised me with its laidback feel even though it is touristy! i don't know how it achieved it, but i guess it has to do with the culture and people ;) and touristy has its perks -- everything is well-oiled -- everyone knows what should be done, how it should be done and even though its chaotic sometimes (like when we went island hopping) -- there is some sort of order in the chaos and everything just functioned smoothly.&nbsp; Very minor hiccups.&nbsp; <br /><br />Travelling with a child, I think that is an important consideration for me especially since we usually travel free and easy (don't think we have gone on a packaged tour with kaira at all, except for cruises); And Langkawi ticked all the right boxes.&nbsp; I loved the eco-tourism activities - and honestly they are not that expensive now as the Ringgit is quite weak.&nbsp; Even accomodation -- there are so many choices from backpackers inn to family resorts to high end resorts -- for budgets of all sorts. and taxis to the major attractions are fixed price -- so we don't have to worry about haggling and being taken for a ride.&nbsp; I guess i am beginning to appreciate touristy ;) <br /><br />Langkawi - we will probably see you again sometime. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6eDFMWgmdFg/Vphbi21_cLI/AAAAAAAAC48/vngSWrpoet8/s1600/20151210_120146.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6eDFMWgmdFg/Vphbi21_cLI/AAAAAAAAC48/vngSWrpoet8/s320/20151210_120146.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Cm-9uwENwZ4/Vphbiyi-dfI/AAAAAAAAC44/9XDzxUDCydg/s1600/20151211_095918.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Cm-9uwENwZ4/Vphbiyi-dfI/AAAAAAAAC44/9XDzxUDCydg/s320/20151211_095918.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-buj8RI481gQ/Vphb7-87EsI/AAAAAAAAC5Q/uptaQGcB56c/s1600/20151211_095326.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-buj8RI481gQ/Vphb7-87EsI/AAAAAAAAC5Q/uptaQGcB56c/s320/20151211_095326.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">&nbsp;</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OK3FVEJWlog/VphbvbmeNXI/AAAAAAAAC5I/A21MxijW0Rg/s1600/20151210_181439.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OK3FVEJWlog/VphbvbmeNXI/AAAAAAAAC5I/A21MxijW0Rg/s320/20151210_181439.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/8j-KSDhR440" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/01/langkawi.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-82898608266865508192016-01-13T14:23:00.001+08:002016-01-15T10:45:44.525+08:00父债子还那天看了电视节目， 一位印度男子为了帮爸爸还债，离乡背井来到新加坡工作， 放弃大学学业。 好个孝顺的孩子。感人之余带些遗憾。但至少这个债还的清。<br /><br />虽说“父债子还” -- 但如果“欠“ 的 是人情 - 还， 也应该适可而止吧。接受了他人的祝福/帮助就大大方方接受吧。 当然也不是说应该觉得人家给予的帮助是理所当然的 - 礼上往来 这个道理我明白。 不明白的是， 为什么 要表现的自己似乎因为接受了帮助而变成了二等人士？ 而觉得要还得比较多才安心？我想这不是他人所要的吧。诚心给的起的人应该不会想你还。如果不是如此，那那些人有何居心我不解。 又或者他们太鄙视他人了。&nbsp; <br /><br />别人的意见总是比较好， 比较对。别人的需求也通常 比较重要。或许别人看到的是你那 “乐于助人” “处处为他人着想” 的 好心肠。遮掩了你自尊心低，永远比不上别人的心理。<br /><br />说实在的， 要还你就还个够吧。没人能阻止也说不上对或错。但无形间把负担转移到下一代-- 要求子女也须有这种心态 - 是不是有些不可理喻？ 这还也还不清的”债“ <br /><br />可能我不善解人意；自私； 太过自我 没试着站在别人的立场；为他人着想。又或者我没试着了解，接纳；又或者怜悯心不够。<br /><br />绝对不是那个好人的问题； 一定是我这个小人心胸太窄。<br /><br /><br />有些想法因为我不认同所以永远不会理解。又或许因为我不理解所以我不认同。勉强接受就只会让自己难受。 何必呢？<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/SKvgqDEqfvA" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2016/01/blog-post.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-15228305272048950962015-11-08T22:20:00.000+08:002015-11-08T22:20:22.826+08:00說時依舊重逢無意中 相對心如麻<br />對面問安好 不提回頭路<br />提起當年事 淚眼笑荒唐<br />我是真的真的真的愛過你<br />說時依舊 淚如傾<br />星星白髮猶少年<br />這句話請你放在心底<br />不要告訴任何人你往哪裡去<br />不要 不要 跟我來<br />家中孩兒等著你<br />等爸爸回家 把飯開<br /><br />說時依舊<br />三毛詞 梁文福曲 林慧萍唱<br /><br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKMNfW0oiJA">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKMNfW0oiJA</a><br /><br /><br />非常非常喜欢这首歌。<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/HtJpAQK8pa8" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/11/blog-post.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-1024051196811626582015-05-07T11:07:00.000+08:002015-05-07T11:07:00.100+08:00伤口虽已痊愈， 疤痕却抹不去前几天， 新闻报道女艺人庞XX 怀孕初期 (似乎是1个月不到） 不幸流产。 之后就投入红星大奖·主持工作 -- 非常之坚强的表现。&nbsp; 她也表示希望借自己的经验， 激励同病相怜的朋友， 继续坚强， 活的精彩。&nbsp; 给她个赞。<br /><br />这让我联想起自己的遭遇。 当时的我， 也是迅速的回复日常生活。&nbsp; 可能不想让年迈的双方父母担心； 也可能是因为还要照顾仅2+岁的女儿吧； 又或者当时老公不在身边， 一切都要自己照料； 而过不久又得从新加坡回荷兰； 当时必需坚强， 勇往直前。&nbsp; 根本就没什么时间去哀。 也不想沉于悲痛吧。<br /><br />5年前的 <a href="http://www.weisze.blogspot.sg/2010/01/so-now-i-understand-how-it-feels-going.html" target="_blank">blog post</a>. <br /><br />虽似无恙。 但事隔5年， 想起， 心还是会酸痛。 伤口虽已痊愈， 疤痕却抹不去。<br /><br />有时我想， 当时如果给予自己时间及空间好好的哀悼， 可能如今就不会感触多多 隐隐作痛。&nbsp; 那一刻过去了， 就回不来了。&nbsp; 我已回不到从前了。<br /><br />借此提醒自己， 勇于面对心里的哀与魔也是一种勇气吧！<br /><br /><br /><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/zchL3lbHbVA" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/05/blog-post.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-91554894656346538042015-05-06T12:34:00.000+08:002015-05-06T12:34:00.903+08:00Waterpark in Germany - Tropical Islands.A couple of days back saw a TV show featuring waterparks.<br /><br />this water park located in Germany looked awesome!!! for a while i wished we were still living in Europe!! Then we can hop into our car and pop by Germany to have some fun!!<br /><br />Blogging it so that i can have it for future reference ;)&nbsp; <a href="https://www.tropical-islands.de/" target="_blank">Website</a>&nbsp; <br /><br />&nbsp;hahaha, seriously don't know when i will be back in Europe again ..... but we never know! ;) <br /><br /><img alt="Lagune" class="desktop" data-image-source="/fileadmin/_processed_/csm_IMG_7576___2560x1600_ff1a6fc23e.jpg" data-resolution-factor="2.3255813953488" data-retina="/fileadmin/_processed_/csm_IMG_7576___2560x1600_4987602448.jpg" height="171" src="https://www.tropical-islands.de/fileadmin/_processed_/csm_IMG_7576___2560x1600_ff1a6fc23e.jpg" width="400" /><br />and also for my friends in Europe who do visit my blog .... maybe you can check it out!! The waterpark looks really amazing!!<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/W-LjXCfDkcc" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/05/waterpark-in-germany-tropical-islands.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-50967483844337510282015-05-05T12:27:00.000+08:002015-05-12T16:37:18.705+08:00Money Saving Tip : Discounted prices for Singapore attraction ticketsRemember i mentioned about getting discounted tickets to Adventure Cove?<br /><br />Just saw their latest price list -- thought i'd share it here! 有福同享 or rather 有 discount 同享 ....hahaha!&nbsp; i don't get any advertising fees from them ok ..... purely sharing cos i think we all enjoy getting a good deal ;) <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-axv_hR7UYpw/VVG7q4cfqOI/AAAAAAAAC4k/mf6hQhbRIis/s1600/AmazingTravel%2Bticket%2Bprices.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-axv_hR7UYpw/VVG7q4cfqOI/AAAAAAAAC4k/mf6hQhbRIis/s320/AmazingTravel%2Bticket%2Bprices.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />anyway, i also realise that there are quite a number of such travel agents offering discounts .... saw some ads on Carrousel too.&nbsp; So you may wish to compare prices before making your final purchase!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/TkrtqbKnXow" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/05/discounted-prices-for-singapore.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-5708066163024549482015-04-23T09:04:00.001+08:002015-04-23T09:04:43.737+08:00Kids & Money Management - 2Saw another video, teaching kids about scams -- titled "<a href="https://youtu.be/0t-XCOsq8cw" target="_blank">Cost of Popularity</a>" <br /><span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span><span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span><span class="text_exposed_show">hopefully this will help some kids in understanding what are "scams" .... and upon recognition of scams, to avoid it.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br /><span class="text_exposed_show"><br /></span><span class="text_exposed_show">thinking of how to structure my conversation with K on this...... </span><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/TutH6Szzn1c" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/04/kids-money-management-2.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-79678847474158546252015-04-22T11:27:00.001+08:002015-04-22T11:27:36.830+08:00How much will my child require for Tertiary Education?There is a calculator available on the OCBC website which gives a gauge of how much one will need for tertiary education in X years time.&nbsp; I find it useful as they differentiate between local and overseas, general and medical degree, and different countries.<br /><br />http://www.ocbc.com/personal-banking/education/<br /><br />i remember when K was born and i was working the numbers, i had to use my excel worksheet to do my workings and work out the numbers!&nbsp;&nbsp; if i had such a calculator then, it would have saved some time! Haha.<br /><br /><br />Honestly, i dislike such calculators! whenever i see the numbers, i feel like fainting :p&nbsp; like those retirement calculators ..... the target amounts are always so unattainable! haha! Ok ok, this calculator is not that scary! those retirement planning calculator is far scarier!! LOL.<br /><br />but i think it gives a very good gauge of the financial commitment required and helps me to validate whether we are on track :) and personally, i think for the local general degree cost estimation, i would increase the amount by another 20%-30%.<br /><br />Currently, after keying in the parameters into the calculator on the OCBC website, it shows that K will need approximately S$51K&nbsp; for a general degree course (tuition and living costs included).<br /><br />For a "sanity" check, i did a quick check on google on the current cost of a business administration degree (guess that is considered a general degree??).&nbsp; <br /><br />For SMU (Singapore Management University), a 4-year business degree course will set one back S$44,800 (tuition fees alone) See <a href="http://www.smu.edu.sg/about/financial/tuition-fees" target="_blank">link</a>.&nbsp; <br /><br />For NUS (National University of Singapore), a general business degree will cost S$31,500 (tuition fees only) per this <a href="https://share.nus.edu.sg/registrar/info/ug/UGTuitionCurrent.pdf" target="_blank">link</a>.<br /><br /><br />So in about 11 years time, when K is of university-going age, assuming an inflation rate of between 3%-5% per annum, fees could easily be 30-50% higher than now.<br /><br />So that's why i say for planning purpose, better to set aside&nbsp; another 20%-30% more to the OCBC figure.&nbsp; and have in mind that that will only suffice for tuition fees.&nbsp; better to set aside a separate amount for living costs.<br /><br />And that is only for local universities!! If one is looking to go abroad, the numbers will naturally be greater.&nbsp; <br /><br />And that is why i marvel at those with a few kids .... what a financial commitment catering to the children's education! it's no wonder that in most families, both have to work! Otherwise how to find the moolahs?? o but of course, i am not talking about the well-to-do families here ;)&nbsp; happy for those who have already set aside sums for their kids education and do not have to worry about it! :)<br /><br />Us?&nbsp; well, we have set aside a sum enough for local tertiary ..... if she wants to go&nbsp; overseas to study -- she will have to find the means herself ..... :D&nbsp; that's what i say now! let's see how things go in 10 years time!!<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/B84AFTFACDA" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/04/how-much-will-my-child-require-for.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-32011883074919496562015-04-18T13:07:00.000+08:002015-04-18T13:07:00.054+08:00Teaching Children About Money<h1 class="wsj-article-headline" itemprop="headline"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Read this article on The Wall Street Journal, thought i'd share it here.&nbsp; </span></span></h1><h1 class="wsj-article-headline" itemprop="headline"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">&nbsp;http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-smart-way-to-teach-children-about-money-1422849602 </span></span></h1><h1 class="wsj-article-headline" itemprop="headline"><span style="font-size: large;">The Smart Way to Teach Children About Money</span></h1><h2 class="sub-head" itemprop="description"><span style="font-size: small;">Many Parents and Schools Take Exactly the Wrong Approach, Research Suggests</span></h2><div class="column col7 at16-col9 at16-offset1"><div class="module"><div class="zonedModule" data-module-id="8" data-module-name="article.app/lib/module/articleBody" data-module-zone="article_body"><div class="article-wrap" data-sbid="SB12274156626456164535504580387054195467616" id="wsj-article-wrap" itemprop="articleBody"><div class="is-lead-inset"><div class=" media-object header " data-layout="header"><div class="media-object-video"><div class="wsj-article-caption">A new study suggests that children need to learn more math, not finance, to be better with money. Harvard Business School's Shawn Cole discusses with WSJ's Tanya Rivero. Photo: Getty</div></div></div></div><div class="clearfix byline-wrap"><div class="byline">By <span class="name" itemprop="name">Charlie Wells</span> </div><time class="timestamp"> February 2, 2015 </time> <br /><div class="comments-count-container"><a class="comments_header" href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-smart-way-to-teach-children-about-money-1422849602#livefyre-comment" rel="nofollow"> <span class="comments_count_icon"></span>&nbsp;</a></div><div class="comments-count-container">&nbsp; </div></div>It’s time to rethink how we teach children about money.<br />For all the effort parents put into helping their children understand dollars and cents, and for all the effort schools put into formal lessons in personal finance, most children still grow up into adults who can’t properly save, spend and budget.<br />Now researchers—from psychologists to economists to communications experts—have started asking why. And the one theme that comes out of their research loud and clear is that we’re doing it all wrong.<br /><div class=" media-object wrap " data-layout="wrap"><div class="media-object-rich-text"><br /></div></div>We focus on teaching finance in school when regular math is much more effective at helping children manage money. We cram their heads full of financial facts and strategies years before they’ll actually need any of it—ensuring that they won’t remember the lessons when they’re most needed. And we squirm about discussing our own family income and debt, giving children fears and false impressions they may never shake off.<br />Here are some of the biggest findings from the research—and advice from educators and researchers—about how we can do better.<br /><h6>Focus on Teaching Math—Not Money</h6>Perhaps the most startling finding is that classroom education in finance often doesn’t translate into real-world results.<br />For decades, studies have extolled the benefits of financial education, pointing out that students who take finance classes score well on tests of financial knowledge—and higher financial literacy leads to better financial behavior.<br />Conclusions like these have led to a growing consensus that schools should teach children about managing their finances, with 43 states now mandating some kind of training.<br />Shawn Cole found this troubling. Not because the studies aren’t true: Many, he says, do show a correlation between financial education and good financial behavior. But few studies demonstrated a strong causal link.<br /><div class=" media-object inline " data-layout="inline"><div class="media-object-image enlarge-image renoImageFormat-P img-inline" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject"><span class="wsj-article-caption-content"></span>&nbsp;<span class="wsj-article-credit" itemprop="creator"><span class="wsj-article-credit-tag"></span> </span> </div></div>So, the professor of finance at Harvard Business School wondered, if widespread financial education were really effective, why are so many young people struggling with debt, foreclosure and low asset accumulation? He and a group of researchers set out to find an answer. They looked at the states that mandated personal-finance curriculums in high school, and compared the financial health of students who graduated before the mandates to those who graduated after. Their hypothesis: If personal-finance education worked, the students who graduated after the programs were implemented would be better off financially.<br /><br />They weren’t. After controlling for state, age, race, time and sex, and analyzing a huge pool of historical financial data, the group found that there was no statistically significant difference between people who graduated within a 15-year span either before or after the personal-finance programs were implemented. Graduates’ asset accumulation and credit management were the same, with or without mandated financial education.<br />“I teach finance for a living, so I want to believe that financial education works,” says Mr. Cole. “But, really, across every data set we looked at, across every population segment, we just couldn’t find any effect of financial education on behavior.”<br />Why? Many studies that show a correlation between financial literacy and real-world financial success try to control for other factors that might influence behavior, but it is very hard to make causal inferences from correlational data, says Mr. Cole. For instance, the income bracket of parents may have a big effect on children’s performance on financial-knowledge tests, much more so than a class they take.<br /><div class=" media-object wrap " data-layout="wrap"><div class="media-object-image enlarge-image renoImageFormat-16U img-wrap" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject"><div class="image-container responsive-media loaded" data-layout-ratio="187.4219%" data-mobile-ratio="187.4219%" style="padding-bottom: 187.4219%;"><img alt="" data-enlarge="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WE-AA821A_TEACH_16U_20150130134507.jpg" data-in-at4units-src="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WE-AA821A_TEACH_16U_20150130134507.jpg" data-in-base-src="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WE-AA821A_TEACH_16U_20150130134507.jpg" data-intent="" src="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WE-AA821A_TEACH_16U_20150130134507.jpg" height="320" title="" width="170" />&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;But the study, issued last year and currently under revision for publication, did find one school subject that <i>does</i> have an impact on students’ financial outcomes: math. Students required by states to take additional math courses practiced better credit management than other students, had a greater percentage of investment income as part of their total income, reported $3,000 higher home equity and were better able to avoid both home foreclosure and credit-card delinquency.<br /><br />“A lot of decisions in finance are just easier if you’re more comfortable with numbers and making numeric comparisons,” says Mr. Cole.<br /><br />Without strong math skills, he says, people tend to use more emotional ways to invest, spend or save their money. What’s more, people with less math experience make worse financial mistakes with issues like compounding or underestimating how quickly interest accumulates.<br /><br />He says the math courses don’t need to be complicated, but should teach about concepts that come up a lot with money, such as exponential growth, which come in handy when thinking about compounding.<br /><br />A parent of two, Mr. Cole says he will be making sure his children take as much math as they can. He recommends other parents do the same.<br /><br /><b>Tell the Whole Story, Warts and All</b><br /><br />There’s a consensus that financial education should begin at home. But the way many parents cover the topic at the kitchen table needs a serious upgrade. “Even now, parents talk more about sex with their children than they do about money,” says Lynsey Romo, an assistant professor of communication at North Carolina State University who studies family information sharing.<br /><br />In a 2014 study of 136 children aged 8 to 17, she found that while children reported their parents shared information on general topics like saving, spending and earning, children said their parents tended to stay mum on sensitive topics like the family’s specific income and family debt.<img alt="" data-enlarge="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WE-AA823B_TEACH_16U_20150130140622.jpg" data-in-at4units-src="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WE-AA823B_TEACH_9U_20150130140622.jpg" data-in-base-src="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WE-AA823B_TEACH_9U_20150130140622.jpg" data-intent="" src="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/WE-AA823B_TEACH_9U_20150130140622.jpg" height="640" title="" width="360" />&nbsp;<span class="image-enlarge">&nbsp;</span><br /><br /><span class="image-enlarge">&nbsp;</span><br />Often, parents fear causing their children anxiety or think talking about money is impolite. The problem is, keeping these secrets often caused more anxiety than telling the truth.&nbsp; Children with wealthy parents, for instance, sometimes assumed their parents didn’t talk about how much money they made because they were poor—but the real reason was that the parents didn’t want the children to brag.<br /><br />And the negative effects of that childhood anxiety can last into adulthood. In other research, Ms. Romo found that subjects who report limited communication with their parents about money later in life feel “clueless,” as if they don’t truly understand how credit cards or money management works. Instead of concealing sensitive topics, Ms. Romo recommends using financial discussions, no matter how sensitive, as “teachable moments.”<br /><br />Trips to the store are good moments to have these conversations, says Anita Vangelisti, a professor of communication at the University of Texas at Austin. Parents might explain why buying one item makes more sense from an economic perspective than another, comparing quality, price, benefits and the family’s general budget.<br /><br /><b>Don’t Make Money Scary</b><br />A group of Polish researchers came to similar conclusions about why people should speak frankly about money. Children, the researchers say, are quick to pick up on the symbolic value of money—all of the emotions it can stir and the associations it carries—even if they don’t understand how cash works. If parents don’t speak frankly about money, the researchers say, those associations pile up and lead children to act selfishly in the short term, and in the long term leave them with illusions about the power of money.<br /><br />In their study, published in the Journal of Economic Psychology, the academics found that children who were focusing on money acted much more selfishly toward their peers. The researchers randomly divided 120 children aged between five and six into four groups. One group counted coins, one counted notes and the others various other objects. After doing so, the children were asked to help pick purple crayons out of a box of mixed-color crayons. The children who counted coins and notes were less willing to help with the task than those that had counted paper and buttons.<br /><br />So, parents must be careful to avoid giving money too much psychological weight, says Tomasz Zaleskiewicz, one of the study’s authors, a psychology professor at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Wroclaw, Poland. The best way to do that is to speak about money in a rational way.<br /><br />Over time, children who don’t get straight answers tend to think about money in purely symbolic terms, giving it more emotional weight than it deserves, he says. They may end up looking at the world through costs and benefits, rather than social rules of reciprocity. This can limit the ability to develop close relationships that would help people cope with problems in a way money cannot.<br /><br />Further, if children continuously come to associate money with power, they might begin to see it as a solution to many problems, he says. They might come to see it as a way to cope with fears, attract new friends or increase their well being.<br /><br /><b>Teach Them ‘Just in Time’</b><br /><br />Another mistake parents make with financial education is trying to get it done in one go. They enroll children in summer camps or one-semester classes that aim to cover everything from running lemonade stands to applying for a mortgage.<br /><br />The problem with this approach is that financial knowledge decays over time, says John Lynch, director of the Center for Research on Consumer Financial Decision Making at the University of Colorado, Boulder.<br /><br />In a meta-analysis of over 200 studies that was published in Management Science last year, Mr. Lynch and two other professors found how swiftly the effects of one-time financial instruction wear off. About half of the studies were about the effects of financial education’s impacts on behavior. Their analysis found that the impact of one hour of financial instruction wore off after about five months. Eighteen hours wore off after around 17 months. And 24 hours disappeared after about 20 months.<br /><br />“So, if you expect that a course taught to children will stick with them into adulthood, you are fooling yourself unless you do something very different from what has been studied so far,” says Mr. Lynch.<br /><br />The professor believes his findings lend support to an increasingly popular strategy among financial educators and policy makers called “just in time” education. Instead of teaching all elements of personal finance at once, “just in time” education gives consumers the knowledge they need just as they are about to engage in a transaction. So, instead of giving information about car loans to students in a textbook, consumers would get the information as they started shopping for cars.<br /><br />Parents can adopt this technique, too.<br /><br />“Let’s say you want to teach your child about budgeting, and you know that every year, Aunt Ethel writes your child a $50 check for Christmas,” says Mr. Lynch. “The moment to talk about budgeting is just before that happens. If you have that conversation a few months before or a few months after, it’s not going to have an effect.”<i>&nbsp;</i><br /><br /><i>Mr. Wells is a news editor for The Wall Street Journal in New York. He can be reached at <a class="icon none" href="mailto:charlie.wells@wsj.com" target="_blank">charlie.wells@wsj.com</a>.</i></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="fyre-comment-stream"><div class="fyre-stream-content"><br /><article class="fyre-comment-article fyre-comment-source-0" data-author-id="65344e6d-4c94-4156-bc90-75ad8b2b8c5e@wsj.fyre.co" data-message-id="268189610" itemscope="itemscope" itemtype="http://schema.org/Comment"><div class="fyre-comment-wrapper fyre-tag-author-subscriber fyre-comment-author-tag-subscriber"><br /><section class="fyre-comment-body"></section><footer class="fyre-comment-footer" style="position: relative;"></footer></div></article></div></div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/JDQdtbjXRoA" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/04/teaching-children-about-money.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-77222552226719654242015-04-17T09:13:00.000+08:002015-04-23T09:05:34.958+08:00Kids & Money Management<br />Saving these for future reference.<br /><br />Had already shown them to Kaira, but i think she will probably need to see these videos again ;) <br /><br /><a href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/tv/tvshows/moneymind/kids-money-a-story-about/1783192.html" target="_blank">A story about saving</a> <br /><br /><a href="https://youtu.be/DFkVRJyjRmo" target="_blank">A story about borrowing</a> <br /><br /><a href="https://youtu.be/J_Duz9y-ohc" target="_blank">A story about earning</a> <br /><br /><a href="https://youtu.be/1el4U_cve40" target="_blank">A story about spending wisely</a> <br /><br /><br /><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/FHvBonyQBiY" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/04/kids-money-management.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-57307540808149625152015-04-09T15:45:00.000+08:002015-04-09T18:24:48.770+08:00Recap : Primary 1 in SingaporeRealised that I don't have many posts about Kaira's primary 1 year and the various interesting encounters and/or challenges that came along our way throughout Primary 1.<br /><br />But i did do one thing which I think will be a great memento for her when she grows up and that is to develop a photobook for her Primary 1 year! Thankful that her teachers do send us photos regularly of what's happening in class and also because I volunteer for certain school activities I managed to capture some wonderful memories of her and her primary 1 classmates. Flipping through the photobook when i first received it (some time end of last year) brings back wonderful memories! I hope she will treasure it when she is older :) definitely worth the time and effort!<br /><br />I am grateful that the mums of her classmates are a terrific bunch! Always ready to share information, insights and extend help whenever required.&nbsp; thankful!<br /><br />for me going into primary school, my foremost concern for kaira was how she will adapt socially and whether she will have relational/interpersonal issues since she is going from a small group environment (max 10 kids in her kindergarten class) to a big class of 30. next would be issues such as time management, money management, how to get her out of bed in the morning&nbsp; etc<br /><br />i honestly wasn't too bothered about the school work -- i figure she should be able to cope. but i needed to deal with issues such as "independence (or lack of),&nbsp; "being responsible", "overconfidence", "unwillingness to put in effort and hard work" ..... endless list.<br /><br />maybe because she is an only child.&nbsp; i am always worried that she is being "mollycoddled" by her parents -_-&nbsp;&nbsp; so from young, i try to mindful and am quick to examine my ways .... such that i sometimes think i come on down too hard on her sometimes. poor gal. o well, i guess when one is sensitive to certain issues or cognitive of the possible negative consequences, there is a tendency to over-compensate.&nbsp; but i think i have kind of found a "middle ground" :)<br /><br />let's start with some areas that i think i have yet to overcome it with her ..... then maybe if some one has any feedback/views, will be kind enough to share via comments :)<br /><br />(1) unwillingness to put in effort and hardwork ..... when it comes to academic work<br /><br />i am actually quite relax when it comes to academic achievements for K.&nbsp; i don't expect her to score full marks for tests. i don't send her for academic enrichment lessons except for Chinese.&nbsp; i don't give her alot of work to do at home --- depending on whether she has homework to do, if she has, i will limit it to one subject a couple of pages.&nbsp; if no homework, then maybe 2 pages each for 2 subjects.&nbsp; usually takes no more than 30 minutes if she is cooperative.&nbsp; but she usually whines and complains and gets distracted that she takes a long time just to finish up 2 pages of worksheet.<br /><br /><br />actually i only started this "consistent work" idea with her from the 2nd half of primary 1.&nbsp; the first half of primary 1 she practically did nothing after school except play (that i shall elaborate more later on ....).&nbsp; so initally she didn't like it at all.&nbsp; she couldn't understand why she needs to do more work at home since she was already learning and doing in school??<br /><br />my rationale is this ..........better to put in consistent effort daily (even if its 30 minutes a day) so that there is no need for revision or whatever....even if there are tests coming up.&nbsp; and by putting in consistent work, i can identify the areas she is weak in and help her to strengthen these areas.&nbsp; and it all started when i realised that she was having some trouble with the maths problem sums.<br /><br />i think while she does get the idea now..... she is still quite resistant.&nbsp; many a time she will tell me that schoolwork is very easy.&nbsp; Tests are also very easy and that she doesn't need to study and she will be "fine".<br /><br />well, i can explain and explain until the cows come home and if she doesn't buy the idea, what can i do?<br /><br />so i started with "not caring" about her spelling tests (both english and chinese). You know, I had the tendency to nag her to learn the spelling words and test her before the actual test.&nbsp; let's just say she finds that a chore and me a nag!! so sometimes i purposely don't remind her that she has spelling tests to see if she will be responsible enough to learn them herself.<br /><br />Sad to say no.&nbsp; and a few times she came back with borderline results -- and that's when i quickly share with her what a difference&nbsp; when "some effort" is made to revise the words for the tests.&nbsp;&nbsp; and it kind of worked.&nbsp; she is not that resistant when i ask her to learn and practice stuff.&nbsp; Until....... occasions when she didn't study and still get full marks (or almost full marks!) ..... she will then fall into her "see, i no need to study also will be fine" attitude!! Aaaargh.&nbsp; Buay tahan (i.e. cannot stand it).&nbsp; Overconfidence!!&nbsp; Misplaced confidence!!<br /><br />I am still figuring out how to motivate her to willingly put in the effort.&nbsp; i have tried dangling rewards -- and while she is excited about the idea -- it doesn't really translate into effort put into doing work.&nbsp; in fact, she then gets really upset that she can't have the reward because she didn't achieve the goals we agreed upon -_-&nbsp; Terrible.....<br /><br />so i have not found the solution to this and i hope i will have the epiphany moment soon.... cos i think she will need more effort moving into P3 .... unlike now .... i have to admit, she will probably still do fairly OK with minimal effort ..... let's see .... i have slightly more than half a year to go!<br /><br />Fighting!<br /><br />I shall continue in the next blog post ...... <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/S3ek6KL6dmM" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/04/recap-primary-1-in-singapore.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-76820970715425626132015-04-08T10:41:00.001+08:002015-04-08T10:41:47.292+08:00Adventure Cove Waterpark, Sentosa SingaporeWe brought Kaira to the adventure cove waterpark during the one week March holidays (yes yes, i know, i am quite tardy in updating my blog these days....heehee).&nbsp; Went with another family and we had great fun.&nbsp; Water play is always fun i think!&nbsp;<br /><br />Anyway, Kaira enjoyed it tremendously and i think it's likely that we will be visiting it another time soon :)<br /><br />Here's my review on tripadvisor if you are interested. and since it was a wet wet day .... no photos !! we didn't have waterproofed phones ;) <br /><br />http://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/ShowUserReviews-g294264-d3747640-r260836635-Adventure_Cove_Waterpark-Sentosa_Island.html#REVIEWS<br /><br />o, money saving tip : try buying the tickets from travel agents or online, cheaper!! We saved like 40% doing so. just need to do surf for deals ;) <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/WzpFrlg7FUc" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/04/adventure-cove-waterpark-sentosa.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-87886705340151937072015-03-27T14:44:00.001+08:002015-03-27T17:56:07.755+08:00Goodbye Mr Lee Kuan Yew. Thank you for all that you have done.<p dir="ltr">23 March 2015, I woke up to news (which i have been anticipating but do not wish for it to come true) that Mr Lee Kuan Yew has passed away.</p><p dir="ltr">It has finally happened. I am not sure how I actually felt. It wasn't just grief.&nbsp; It was more than that.&nbsp; Much more.</p><p dir="ltr">Friends who know me will know that the governing party, which is synonymous with Mr Lee Kuan Yew has my support. Sure there were areas I wasn't happy about but they have my support. </p><p dir="ltr">It wasn't&nbsp; so when I was younger.</p><p dir="ltr">When I was in my 20s/early 30s I really couldn't be bothered with politics. I didn't see/understand the impact that it had on me or my loved ones. To me, whatever I had at the point in life was either provided for by my family or achieved through my own efforts. Government ? Politics? I was clueless. </p><p dir="ltr">How ignorant I was. And to think I am educated?!? *ashamed* </p><p dir="ltr">In fact I was rather unhappy with my life in Singapore that I was harbouring thoughts/plans about immigration. what was I unhappy about? Honestly, looking back now I don't really remember.... maybe the stress of working/living in Singapore; maybe the grass is greener on the other side syndrome where everywhere else simply looked more attractive. More space. More nature. Less stress.&nbsp; More leisurely pace. Whatever.</p><p dir="ltr">When the opportunity came for hubby to work overseas we gamely went! That decision took us to Hong Kong and Netherlands for a total of 8 years. 说长不长 说短不短。 </p><p dir="ltr">And it is during this time that my views of Singapore and our leaders took a shift.</p><p dir="ltr">In fact it took a turn for the worse initially. ... cos I felt that the government was losing touch with the ground. And of course it was easy to criticise on paper. </p><p dir="ltr">And things are always simpler when there is only 1 perspective.&nbsp; Mine.&nbsp; </p><p dir="ltr">They should have done this. Consider that. Why wasn't there more communication and planning ? Questions and criticisms abound.</p><p dir="ltr">But we all know (or do we?).... That governing the country is truly an enormous task.... I am not sure even if i tried.... would I be able to comprehend all the mind boggling affairs. ... macro, micro, international and stuff.&nbsp;&nbsp; Not forgetting differing views from the population .... </p><p dir="ltr">Seriously.&nbsp; </p><p dir="ltr">Anyway, I digress.</p><p dir="ltr">But things started to change as I interact with people of different nationalities and begin to understand a little about the struggles/problems that their nations face.&nbsp; And having lived in 2 other countries I experienced some of <u>these</u> challenges as well. And I experienced too the feeling of being viewed as&nbsp; the 'foreign talent' (a nicer way of putting it....) and it became clearer to me that each nation has unique challenges and as a citizen of one country.... how should i play my part? Complain and complain and hoping for change (which may or may not be better)? Or find ways to constructively contribute and consider various perspectives?</p><p dir="ltr">I think the other thing that changed me was after I had my daughter.&nbsp; It was a subtle change.&nbsp; Somehow having a child made me consider issues I didnt think were important before. My perspectives also changed slightly.</p><p dir="ltr">You know when&nbsp; I was working - usually i try to be in control of the work situation .... I see my job as one that includes strategising to meet business targets, to&nbsp; solve problems, anticipate challenges and had contingent plans... and usually things work out e.g. Our marketing plan will be launched per plan, business targets will be met, service issues anticipated or resolved. ..&nbsp; and at the end of the day the bosses are happy, everyone's happy, we receive our salaries and bonuses. </p><p dir="ltr">But raising a child wasn't that straight forward. </p><p dir="ltr">As my daughter grew.... I realised that the best of my intentions may not turn out the way I want it.... my daughter may not respond in a way I anticipate. She has her own mind and opinions. I try to motivate her but she may not bite.&nbsp; it's a learning process. What are her needs? How do I nurture her? How can I help her to succeed?&nbsp; What about her emotional needs?&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p dir="ltr">Nowadays we will get into arguments sometimes.&nbsp; She doesn't understand why I want things done certain ways. Why her suggestions were not approved. And simply why can't she do things her way? I try to explain my rationale. Get her buy-in.&nbsp;&nbsp; It doesn't work some times and I take out my trump card : I am the mother, you are my child, follow me. ;p o dear! So draconian! Just like PAP in the early days! Lolol. </p><p dir="ltr">Of course I always tell my daughter that I have her interests at heart... that when she grows up she will understand why.... that as the older one I am more experienced. ... but I know she isn't very convinced at times.&nbsp; She finds me naggy, unreasonable and why is it that she can't always get her way??</p><p dir="ltr">But but I am trying to protect you! I say in my heart. At the end of the day I realise that I have to let her try and fail at times, even when it is painful for me especially&nbsp; when the consequences are clear to me.</p><p dir="ltr">And sometimes I think maybe this is the way with the government at times.... trying it's best to protect the citizens ....who may not understand or grasp it.&nbsp; </p><p dir="ltr">Ah....maybe.</p><p dir="ltr">Imagine governing a country. Millions of lives in your hand. Me? I am only talking about 1 and I am grappling and pulling my hair out sometimes. So I dare not say I comprehend the challenges the government face. I don't.&nbsp; </p><p dir="ltr">I began to look back at the things the government&nbsp; has done. Their 用心良苦. Trying to understand why certain actions were taken. The results.&nbsp; The repercussions. I think for Singapore we had a lot more positives than negative going for us. But it was difficult at times I believe. Especially when we don't see the big picture or cannot grasp the essence. And of course there are some within the government who are totally ...... I am lost for words. .... cannot make it?? </p><p dir="ltr">But at the end of the day what is the kind of government, leader that I (you) want? That is the fundamental question.</p><p dir="ltr">With Mr LKY's passing.... It is timely to reflect.&nbsp; And the reason I believe so many grieved is because he is such a great leader.... listen to his speeches, look at his policies and one can see that he ALWAYS has the interests of Singapore and Singaporean first.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; He didn't enter politics for the power or glory or money.&nbsp; His passion for the country and his people is unwavering to the point that maybe it was stifling.&nbsp; What more could I ask for in a leader? A leader who keeps his promises. Doesn't sell his country out for his personal gain. </p><p dir="ltr">And most fortunately for us, I feel,&nbsp; his son takes a lot after his father in terms of his passion for Singapore.&nbsp;&nbsp; Like I said before&nbsp; -- when PM Lee was younger I found him arrogant and really out of touch with the ground.&nbsp; But I see and feel his passion for this country, it's people. He has changed and is changing. Could be a result of the pressure from the electorate or the changing society. .. whatever it is, isn't it good that our leader&nbsp; is listening and adapting?&nbsp; So I always pray that the Lord will grant him wisdom to choose honest, wise and passionate people for his team. He can't do this alone. Or even with a few good man. A whole team is required and also the nation's cooperation. </p><p dir="ltr">There is a Chinese saying 富不过三代。 I will be lying if I say I am not a little worried for Singapore.&nbsp; PM Lee is the 3rd generation leadership now.....</p><p dir="ltr">But I am grateful for the foundation that Mr Lee Kuan Yew has laid. The team that he has built up. I will continue to pray for my country and it's leadership.</p><p dir="ltr">Thank you Mr Lee. Words cannot express my gratitude.&nbsp; I am grateful that I live in this city that you and your team painstakingly built. I will try my best to give back to my country, in whatever small way I can. Thank you. Rest in peace. </p><p dir="ltr">#RemeberingLeeKuanYew </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-roOKfNVuG0A/VRUiARkdBhI/AAAAAAAAC4Q/CoPMwLboh94/s1600/20150325_164432_Antonio_Clean.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-roOKfNVuG0A/VRUiARkdBhI/AAAAAAAAC4Q/CoPMwLboh94/s640/20150325_164432_Antonio_Clean.jpg"> </a> </div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/AmvJxijaOFM" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/03/goodbye-mr-lee-kuan-yew-thank-you-for.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8881456.post-42588404169560728192015-02-06T13:07:00.002+08:002015-02-06T14:15:01.097+08:00Latest SGD Fixed Deposit Promotion Rates - as at Feb 2015I always wished there's a website i can go to and it displays all the Fixed Deposit promotional rates available at the point in time. <br /><div><br /></div><div>Have you found such a website? &nbsp;please let me know if you have!</div><div><br /></div><div>In the meantime, i will just have to manually search and compile the information.</div><div><br /></div><div>And since I have done it, thought i'd just post and share it with others looking for similar information!</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PY5qD7bO1GY/VNRMAGb4RLI/AAAAAAAAC3M/gDVomLU5g_Q/s1600/FD%2Brates%2BFeb%2B2015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PY5qD7bO1GY/VNRMAGb4RLI/AAAAAAAAC3M/gDVomLU5g_Q/s1600/FD%2Brates%2BFeb%2B2015.jpg" height="157" width="320" /></a></div><div><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 933px;"><colgroup><col style="mso-width-alt: 5558; mso-width-source: userset; width: 114pt;" width="152"></col><col style="mso-width-alt: 3949; mso-width-source: userset; width: 81pt;" width="108"></col><col style="mso-width-alt: 2816; mso-width-source: userset; width: 58pt;" width="77"></col><col style="mso-width-alt: 2889; mso-width-source: userset; width: 59pt;" width="79"></col><col style="mso-width-alt: 4681; mso-width-source: userset; width: 96pt;" width="128"></col><col style="mso-width-alt: 3510; mso-width-source: userset; width: 72pt;" width="96"></col><col style="mso-width-alt: 2925; mso-width-source: userset; width: 60pt;" width="80"></col><col style="mso-width-alt: 2816; mso-width-source: userset; width: 58pt;" width="77"></col><col style="mso-width-alt: 4973; mso-width-source: userset; width: 102pt;" width="136"></col></colgroup><tbody></tbody></table><br /></div><div>p/s just a note that all these information is publicly available on the bank's website. &nbsp;information is for 12 month tenure only as that's what i am interested in. &nbsp;there are varying rates for different tenures and amounts. &nbsp;please do your own homework!&nbsp;</div><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WeiSze-HowAreYouGettingAlong/~4/MbyUoH7ZNkg" height="1" width="1" alt=""/>Ms Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13390456657203807203noreply@blogger.com0http://weisze.blogspot.com/2015/02/latest-sgd-fixed-deposit-promotion.html